He played 12 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL), first for the Boston Bruins, and later for the Detroit Red Wings. At the start of the 1938–39 season, after ten full seasons with Boston, he was traded to the Detroit Red Wings, where he completed the season, and played another full one before retiring.

His NHL career began on a line withBill Carson andPercy Galbraith, and he led the Bruins in scoring each of his first three seasons with the team. Boston Bruins. Harry Oliver. [2] He left Selkirk for a professional career inCalgary in 1920.